Canadian man says he developed painful condition after long flight

Air travel can have many risks including some potentially serious health effects.

As CBC reports, a Canadian man named Colin Savage who was traveling by Air Canada found out that he had developed blood clots after turbulence forced him to stay seated for most of "a 10-hour flight from Chile to Toronto."

SEE ALSO: A Chinese city has created larger, pink-outlined parking spaces for women drivers

He felt severe pain afterwards so he went to the hospital and learned that he had deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, with blood clots that had traveled up to the lungs.

According to the World Health Organization, or WHO, "DVT can occur as a result of prolonged immobility, for instance during long-distance travel, whether by car, bus, train or air."

Related: See the dirtiest places on airplanes:

But when Savage reached out to Air Canada, the airline told him that his state was likely due to a preexisting condition.

The company also pointed to the WHO's stance that air travel is safe for healthy passengers; however, James Douketis, a vascular doctor, points out in the CBC article that flying does trigger DVT in about "one in 5,000 travellers on long flights."

The National Blood Clot Alliance suggests that related risks can be mitigated by engaging in exercises, staying hydrated, and abstaining from alcohol on a plane.

As for Savage, he is reportedly "slowly recovering and starting to get his energy back."